CLASSIC BATMAN STORIES: THE LONG HALLOWEEN
Author: Bill "Jett" Ramey

I have a confession to make.

Until very recently, I had never read THE LONG HALLOWEEN in its entirety. Doing so -- or should I say not doing so -- is akin to a sin for a Batman fan.

Now, it’s not that I’ve never read any of it or had never seen the thing. Since it was released back in the 90s, I’ve picked it up and read bits in pieces while visiting comic book or regular book stores.

So you are probably saying to yourself, “How in the hell can Jett -- a self-proclaimed ‘huge’ Batman fan and editor of BATMAN ON FILM -- not have read this book?” Well, the answer is simple. About the time TLH was released, my comic book reading and collecting sort of waned. This was a period in comics when storylines crossed-over into almost every Bat-book and it sort of got hard to keep up. Also, I had started a little website that became the one you are reading now, and it began to take up some of my down time. Perhaps not the best of excuses, but the truth nonetheless.

I have now made up for my past transgression. I ordered THE LONG HALLOWEEN graphic novel a few weeks ago and took it with me on my trip to San Francisco for Wondercon (2006). I proceeded to read the thing from cover-to-cover during the plane ride to the west coast. And I’ve got to say, TLH was one of the best Batman stories I’ve ever read.

Without giving away any details (This review is SPOILER FREE), TLH takes place during the early years of The Batman‘s career, not far removed from the events of BATMAN: YEAR ONE. It seems to be influenced to a certain degree by films such as THE GODFATHER, with its classic mafia-type charcters Carmine “The Roman” Falcone and his chief rival, Salvatore Maroni. But Gotham City is changing -- as are the criminals The Batman fights. TLH depicts the gradual change in the criminal underworld from traditional bad guys to costumed super villains (“Freaks“ as they are called), such as The Joker, The Riddler, Poison Ivy, Calender Man, The Scarecrow, and The Mad Hatter (all of whom appear at various times during TLH).

TLH can also be viewed as the origin story of the classic Batman villain Two Face. Of course, Two Face wasn’t always a criminal -- he was once Gotham City’s District Attorney Harvey Dent. Along with The Batman and GPD Police Captain Jim Gordon, the three form a team with the goal of bringing down Gotham’s #1 crime lord, Carmine Falcone.

Just as the trio are about to put their plan into action, a killer begins taking out members of Falcone’s crime family on holidays -- leaving behind holiday-related items as a calling card. As a result of the specific days the killer strikes, he is nicknamed “Holiday” by Gotham’s media.

As the story progresses, the holiday killings continue. The Batman, Dent, and Gordon find themselves not only trying to bring down Falcone, they are also trying to prevent Holiday from striking again -- as well as figuring out the killer’s identity.

So who is Holiday? I won’t give it away, but all signs point to one person as the story plays out. But as with all good mysteries, the most obvious person isn’t always the culprit. Or is that precisely the case this time?

I found TLH an engrossing, pager-tuner of a story. The depictions of The Batman, Gordon, and Dent -- whose partnership is the center of the story -- are fantastic. All three are heroes, albeit each have different methods of seeking justice. You find yourself rooting for all three, hoping that the “team“ succeeds, although you know that the outcome is not a good one.

While TLH features several of The Batman's classic rouges as previously mentioned (including Catwoman who plays an important role in the story), The Batman taking them on is not the focus. They are important, but secondary. TLH is a good old fashioned "whodonit" and a couple of nice twists at the end.

As you may well know, TLH -- along with the aforementioned YEAR ONE and THE MAN WHO FALLS -- were strong influences on the live-action motion picture BATMAN BEGINS. Allegedly, the sequel to BEGINS will incorporate more of TLH into its story -- in particular the Dent/Gordon/Batman troika and the rise of the “Freak” criminal element in Gotham. Could The Batman be the cause for the latter?

All in all, it is safe to say that THE LONG HALLOWEEN is a extraordinary Batman story and should be considered a "classic" when it comes to Batman comic books and graphic novels. Also, major props to writer Jeph Loeb for one heck of a story and Tim Sale for his fantastic Bat-artwork.

And one last note: as punishment for waiting so long to read THE LONG HALLOWEEN, I subjected myself to BATMAN AND ROBIN on DVD three -- yes THREE -- times in a row.

(EDITOR'S NOTE: For a detailed and SPOILER-filled review of THE LONG HALLOWEEN by John Liette, please CLICK HERE.)